Posted by Tim Holloway on Monday, March 15, 2004 at 2:19PM :
I was in a junkyard in Vermont today and asked if they had any old Dodges. THey didnt know but said feel free to look around. After a short search I found a 65 stepside sweptline (correct me if I have the wrong name.) It had been in a front collision. As I rounded the back, I found the grail. A really decent tailgate!!! I walked back to the office to inquire on the price. The woman behind the counter thought for a bit and said "thirty dollars if you pull it. I said fair enough and grabbed a ratchet from the truck to pull the 6 bolts holding it on. None of the bolts gave me any trouble, but the gate wouldnt budge. Thats when I noticed the 2 screws in the top of the center hinge. Unprepared to remove these large phillips screws I again retreated to the office. The woman directed me to a couple of yard monkeys with a big forklift. They drove over to the truck and
as they were trying to pick the truck up I was marvelling at how nice the rest of the bed was. The floor was rotted out, and the little running boards were rusted through but the fenders were totally dent free and no rust. The bed sides and headboard were also very straight and rust free. As I was contemplating buying the entire bed, the monkey on the forklift got angry with his inability to pick the truck up and decided to rip the bed off the frame with his forks. This he was sucsessfull at, much to the trauma of the bed and me. I couldnt believe it. they brought the bed to the "shop" to fire up the torch to pull these 2 screws. when the torch wouldnt light he took a big saw and cut the rear of the bed off in front of the rear stake pocket. Then they picked up the remains and dumped them into a pile of scrap washing machines and the like. I paid up and left, still incredulous at the spectacle I had just witnessed. I felt as if I was an accomplice in a crime. But, looking in my mirror at the tailgate made me feel better.
Tim
Follow Ups: